Abstract:

This article reflects on the use of a hand puppet (Billy Bear) in narrative therapeutic conversations with a five year old girl (pseudonym Lisa) who has been diagnosed with leukaemia (blood cancer). The first part of this article discusses the concept "garden" as a guiding metaphor in this study. It is followed by a section on the narrative therapeutic framework of this project. The next section deals with the young cancer patient's "life garden", including the physical, social and emotional development of Lisa as a preschooler in a therapeutic context, as well as leukaemia, which is depicted as a "change in season". The last main section focuses on the hand puppet that speaks the young cancer patient's language. The article concludes with a section on the question whether Lisa still has a dream in view of the uncertainty of her condition as a cancer patient.